Diffusers
are a type of diffractive optic that can take a laser beam and redistribute
the light into virtually any pattern desired.

Traditionally, diffusers have been made using
binary technology which resulted in a bright central zero order hot spot",
significant haze, and relatively low efficiencies. Now, by applying MEMS
Optical's patented gray scale production process,
diffusers can be made with minimal zero order hot spots (often less than
1%) and efficiencies as high as 95%.

We can design and fabricate simple symmetrical
shapes such as circles, squares, and crosshairs or we can make more complex
shapes such as company logos. We can even take a person's picture, digitize
it, and make a diffuser to project the picture.

Advantages of diffusers are that they are
not sensitive to alignment and do not affect the polarization of the input
beam. They can be made out of fused silica, silicon, plastic, or other
materials covering wavelengths from 193nm to 20um. Both stock
and custom designs are available.